Many cleaning compositions include a foaming agent to increase contact time on surfaces to be cleaned. Such compositions are presently used in many applications, such as retail, industrial and institutional including grease cutters, clinging lime scale removers, shower wall cleaners, bathtub cleaners, hand sanitizing gels, disinfectant gels, hand-soaps, teat dips, coatings, stabilized enzymes, structured liquids, and the like.
The most widely used foaming agent is cocamide DEA, or cocamide diethanolamine, a diethanolamide made by reacting a mixture of fatty acids from coconut oils (cocamide) with diethanolamine. The agent may also been known as lauramide diethanolamine, Coco Diethanolamide, coconut oil amide of diethanolamine, Lauramide DEA, Lauric diethanolamide, Lauroyl diethanolamide, and Lauryl diethanolamide.
It is a viscous liquid and is used as a foaming agent in bath products like shampoos and hand soaps, and in cosmetics as an emulsifying agent. The chemical formula is CH3(CH2)nC(═O)N(CH2CH2OH)2, where n can vary depending on the source of fatty acids. Coconut oil contains about 50% of lauric acid, thus the formula of cocamide can be written as CH3(CH2)10CONH2, though the number of carbon atoms in the chains varies. Cocamide DEA has come under criticism lately and is under regulatory pressure to have it removed from products. It is an allergen that can cause contact dermatitis in individuals who are susceptible to skin allergies. More recently, cocamide DEA has been linked to cancer.
The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) lists coconut oil diethanolamine condensate (cocamide DEA) as an IARC Group 2B carcinogen, which identifies this chemical as possibly carcinogenic to humans. In June 2012, the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment added Cocamide DEA to the California Proposition 65 (1986) list of chemicals known to cause cancer.
Accordingly it is an object herein to provide a foam stabilizer that can be used as a replacement for cocamide DEA.
It is yet another object of the invention to provide a foam stabilizer that is safe, environmentally friendly and economically feasible.
Other objects, aspects and advantages of this invention will be apparent to one skilled in the art in view of the following disclosure, the drawings, and the appended claims.